Not sure how we missed this gem of a creation from 2012, but behold the Star Wars barrel organ, built by a team in Germany including Lego Certified Professional Rene Hoffmeister, in honor of the release of Star Wars Episode I in 3D.

From team member Lorenz Lnggrtnr:

We took the iconic Star Wars Main Theme, rearranged it and translated it into a matrix – the constrution blueprint for the organ. Then, we took the four most famous Star Wars worlds – Hoth, Tatooine, Endor and the Death Star – and built them on to the barrel, accordingly to the musical composition. When the organ is turned, the bricks touch mechanical sensors – these strike the keys of a built-in keyboard and play the Star Wars Main Theme.

The result is a fascinating mechanism that translates a whopping 20,000 bricks to music when manually rotated. The instrument toured a number of German cinemas at the time of the film showing, and was due to be permanently installed at Legoland Germany at the end of 2012.

I’m a word nerd who loves to geek out on how emerging technology affects the lexicon. When not fawning over perfect word choices, I can be found on the nearest mountain, looking for untouched powder fields and ideal alpine lakes.

I was an editor for the first 40 volumes of MAKE. The maker movement provides me with endless inspiration, and I love shining light on the incredible makers in our community. Covering art is my passion — after all, art is the first thing most of us ever made.